Steam-cooker.



C. WOOD. I

STEAM COOKER.

APPLICATION FILED DEc.3I, I9I3.

1,146,225. Patented Jly 13, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

HHIIII' c. III/00D.V

STEAM COOKER.

APPLICATION FILED DEc.3I. I9I3.

COLUMBIA PLANOCIRAPH co.. WASHINGTON. IIIA C,

CHARLES WOOD, OF JACKSONVILLE, ILLINOIS.

STEAM-coolsten,

Specification of Letters Patent. v

Application led December 31, 1913. Serial No. 809,752.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES Woon, a citizen of the United States, residing at Jacksonville, in the county of Morgan and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Steam-Cookers, of which the following is a speeication.

My invention relates to cooking apparatus and particularly to steam cookers.

The primary object of my invention is the provision of a very simple cooker of this character so made that it may be readily taken apart for transportation and afterward setup, and so constructed that the material being cooked will be thoroughly heated and so formed that no steam will escape from the cooker but that the steam will be condensed and the water ofy condensation will pass back into the cooker and be again circulated through the food.

iA further object of the invention is to proyide positive means for causing the flame from the fire to pass around the water tubes before passing out of the stack.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a sectional base for the fire-box so constructed that rthe fire brick `may be readily removed and replaced when necessary.

.Other objects will appear in the course of the following' description.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a longitudinal vertical section of a steam cooker constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is a vertical section on the line 2 2 of Fig. l. Fig. 3 is a vplan view of the base for the furnace. l

Corresponding and like parts are referred to ,in the following description and indicated in all the views of the accompanying drawings by the same reference characters.

Referring to these drawings, 2 designates the cooker proper consisting of a receptacle preferably of sheet metal. The bottom of the receptacle 2 is formed with downwardly extending flanges 3 which engage over the brick work 4 forming the base upon which the receptacle 2 rests. The upper end of the receptacle 2 is closed by means of a hinged cover 5 having depending flanges 6 which extend down into the walls forming the sides of lthe receptacle 2. These depending flanges 6 play an important part in my improved cooker as will be later stated.

The lcover 5 may be hinged in any suitable manner to the body of the receptacle 2 and is preferably fastened down tightly by means of the latch 7. The furnace 8 may be Patented July 13, 1915.

open at its bottom and is adapted to rest i upon a base l1 whose structure-will be pres: ently described. f

The furnace is `provided at its forward end with aldoor 12 whereby fuel may be thrown into the .furnace and at its rear upper end the furnace is provided with a stack or flue 13. A deiecting wall 141 extends downward from the top of the furnace as illustrated clearly in Fig. 1, this delecting wall being vof refractory material and being for the purpose of causing the products of combustion in the forward portion of the' furnace to pass downward toward the bot# tom of the furnace before passing vout through the stack 13. In other words, this defleeting wall 14 acts to prevent a directpassage of the products ofcombustion from the fire boX or grate to the flue and causes them to take a circuitous path.

Disposedhorizontally jin the furnace are a plurality of series of water tubes 15. These tubes are composed of iron pipes and-extend entirely through the furnace fromy end to end and project at their rear ends as illustrated in Fig. 1. f The projecting rear ends of lthe tubes 15 pass through the sidewall 16 of the receptacle 2 below the middle thereof. These tubesl are held to the side wall 16 by means of clamping nuts 17 and 18 disposed one on each side of the wall 16.` 4These clamping nuts may be readily removed to permit the withdrawal of the tubes 15l from,

the receptacle 2. The inlet ends ofthese pipes 15 are protected by means'of a-shield 1,9v of perforated metal, the upper endiof which is angularly bent as at 20 and lattached to the walls 16 by means of bolts 21', the nuts of which are disposed on the outer face of the wall 16. It will be noted that the wall 16 is spaced from the rearwally of the furnace a suicient distance to permitthe ready insertion of wrenches for the purpose of unscrewing the nuts 18 and unscrewing the nut on the bolt 21, The lower A.end of the shield 19 bears against the bottom ,of the receptacle 2 and the side margins ofthe shield are inwardly turned so as to contact with the wall 16. The purpose of this shield 19 is to prevent grain,'potatoes or other Ina.- terial which is being cooked in the receptacle icc 2 from passing into the water tubes 15 and I choking them.

The water tubes 15 as before stated extend entirely through the furnace from end vto end and either the tubes 15 or the extensions therefrom pass through the front wall of the furnace and are interiorly screw threaded for the reception of screw plugs 22. These normally close the front ends of the tubes 15 but when removed permit the tubes to be readily cleaned. Thus if by chance any foreign'matter should collect in these tubes, it may be readily ejected therefrom so as to lift the tubes clear for the proper circulation of water from the receptacle 2. Preferably the tubes of the two series are arranged in alinement with each other and each upper tube is connected to a corresponding lower tube 15 in any suitable manner. As illustrated, the tubes 15 each at its rear end extends into an albow 23, the upper elbow having a branch extending downward and the lower elbow having a branch extending upward, and a sleeve or thimble 24 or other suitable coupling connects these branches. Thus water passing into one of the lower tubes will pass to the forward end thereof, then pass upward and back into the receptacle through the upper tube, or steam which may be generated withinthe tubes 15 will pass out through the upper tube and be discharged into the receptacle 2.

As before stated, one of the objects of this present invention is to provide a cooker which being made in sections, may be readily transported and readily set up at any dej sired place and readily taken down for cleaning or repair. For this purpose I preferably form the base of the cooker as a separate member. Thus the base 11 is preferably formed of sheet metal.

The forward end of the base is formed to provide a rectangular ash-pit 25 closed by a door 26 at its forward end, this door being provided with proper draft openings and dampers. The upper end of the ash-pit 25 carries the grate bars 27. Rearward of the ash-pit 25 the upper portion of the base 11 is formed by transversely extending slabs 28 of fire brick or other refractory material, so set in place that they may be readily removed when desired. The forward end of the base is formed with an upwardly projecting flange 29 adapted to engage against the front face of the furnace, while the rear vend of the base is provided with an upwardly projecting flange 30 adapted to engage with' the rear end of the furnace. The sides of the base are formed with upwardly projecting extensions or flanges 31 which bear against the walls of the side of the furnace. Thus the furnace is set into the base so that when in position it is held from movement relative to the base.

Preferably the walls of the base are formed of sheet metal so as to make the base as light as possible, and this sheet metal is folded as at 32 so as to form a division wall between the ash-pin 25 and the rear portion of the base. The space immediately behind this wall 32 is hollow and the material of the wall 32 extends upward and then rearward as at 33 and then downward as at 34, the portion 33 supporting the fire-brick or slabs 2S. These slabs are held in place by means of longitudinally extending lateral flanges 35 which permit the fire-brick to be readily put in place or removed and which hold the fire-brick or slabs firmly in position against accidental shifting.

The operation of my invention is as follows. The receptacle 2 is partially filled with water and the food to be cooked or steamed. The water is at such a level of the receptacle that one or both of the series of pipes 15 are filled with water. The products of combustion pass upward into the upper portion of the furnace and are then deflected downward by the deflecting wall 14E so as to pass again around the tubes 15 and then pass outward 'through the stack 13. As steam is evolved it wlll pass into the receptacle 2 cooking the material therein, and will rise into the upper portion of the receptacle. A pocket is formed'by the depending flanges G which will retain steam in the upper portion of the receptacle so that the steam will condense upon the relatively cold material of the cover 5 and will drip back into the water contained in the receptacle 2.

The angle iron forming the depending flange 6 of the cover in practice is one inch or more in depth, and fits tightly within the walls of the receptacle 2 so that there must be a layer of steam at least an inch in depth in the upper portion of the receptacle 2 before the steam can get out between the flange 6 and the side wall of the receptacle. Before the steam can pass out, therefore, the steam will be condensed and the water will drip back into the tank or receptacle so that nothing is evaporated. Byreason of this construction no odor of the cooking material will pass from the receptacle 2, the water practically sealing this joint at the top of the tank. llvery particle of the water which rises into steam is condensed and this water of condensation passes back into the tank and thus nothing of the strength of the corn or other material being cooked is lost. Without this flange and with the lid or cover simply resting upon the walls of the receptacle 2, I have found that about ten per cent; of the strength of the grain or other material is lost by evaporation. Tt is pointed out also that there is a space between the adjacent wall 16 of the receptacle or tank 2 and the rear wall of the furnace. This space not only permits the ready manipulation of the nuts on the tubes and of the nut 21,but also has a further function in that it insulates the heated wall of the fire-box or furnace from the adjacent wall 16 of the receptacle 2 and thus prevents scorching of the material within the receptacle as would be the case did this receptacle 2 abut directly against the end ofthe furnace.

The wall 14 saves about one-half the heat units of the fire as the products of combustion are forced back around the tubes 15 before they can possibly pass out of the furnace. As before stated, the tubes may be readily cleaned by taking out the plugs 22. l/Vhen it is desired to take the furnace apart for transportation, it is only necessary to remove the shield 19, then remove the nuts 17 and withdraw the receptacle 2 from its .engagement with the tubes. The stack 13 may then be readily detached from its engagement with the furnace and the furnace may be lifted from its base. Thus the furnace is formed by four separate and readily transportable pieces which may however be easily put together and set up wherever desired. 'Y

Vhile this furnace is particularly intended for the purpose of cooking feed for animals such as pigs, cows, etc., it is of course entirely adapted to be used for cooking other food and is adapted to be used in large hotels, restaurants and in the army. While I have illustrated the furnace as raised upon a foundation of brickwork, it will be understood that the furnace might be mounted upon legs as where it is used in livery stables or in barns or like situations.

It will be noted that the shield 19 not only prevents the inlet of the food being cooked into the tubes 15 and holds the food away from the ends of these tubes so that the passage of water or steam will not be obstructed, but that this shield 19 covering as it does the ends of the tubes 15 and the nuts 17 as a consequence acts to prevent the accidental turning or loosening of these nuts 17.

It is to be particularly pointed out that by reason of the connection 24 and 23 extending between the pipes, there are no dead ends, and that as a consequence the water within the boiler 2 is constantly circulating and is constantly in motion, and as a consequence turns the corn or other material within the receptacle 2 over and over in hot water. The hot water in this receptacle 2 is kept at a temperature of 150o for ten hours. This doubles the grain in bulk without causing the grain to lose its strength. Furthermore, this constant motion of the grain tends to cook it evenly and thoroughly, which is not the case where the grain is not in, more or less, constant motion. It is particularly necessary that the grain shall be evenly cooked, as otherwise, it will be liable to scour the cattle.

The treatment which the grain undergoes above the lower edge of the flange 6, and

that is about six inches from the top of the tank.

What I claim is: 1. A steam cooker including a steaming receptacle, a furnace arranged in proximity to the receptacle and provided at its forward ends with grate bars, straight water i' .tubes extending longitudinally through the furnace immediately above the grate bars, the rear ends of the tubes being open and being detachably secured in the wall of the receptacle, said tubes being arranged in superposed horizontal series, the tubes of each series being arranged in parallel spaced relation to each other and being disposed in vertical alinement with the corresponding tubes of the adjacent series, vertical tubes connecting the corresponding tubes of the adjacent horizontal series, the several tubes of each horizontal series being unconnected as regards their relation to each other, closures for the forward ends of all of the tubes, and. a perforated shield mounted in th?) receptacle over the open ends of the tu es. v

2. A steam cooker including a steaming 3 receptacle, a furnace arranged in proximity to the receptacle and provided with grate bars at `its front end, straight water tubes extending longitudinallythrough the furnace immediately above the grate bars and having their rear ends open and secured in a wall of the receptacle, the furnace being provided adjacent the rear end thereof with.

a flue, a deflecting wall arranged withinthe furnace forwardly of said flue, the said wall dividingr the upper portion of the furnace at its forward end from the upper portion thereof at its rear end and abutting said tubes, a perforated shield secured within the receptacle and extending over the rear ends of said tubes, and closures for the front ends of the tubes.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES WOOD. [Ls] Witnesses:

R. C. REYNOLDS, J. J. KELLY.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Gommissiioner of Iatents, Washington, D. G. 

